Miss Julia Renews Her Vows by Ann B. Ross

if she wanted to.”
    “I believe you, Etta Mae. But what happened that morning?”
    “Well, she was in a bad mood when I got there, but that wasn’t unusual. But that day, her sitter hadn’t come in, so she was more upset than normal. I got her cleaned up, checked to be sure she still had enough of her medications, got her out of bed and her foot elevated—she has gout—and then she started accusing me of taking her gold bangle bracelet. I just laughed it off, because I’m not a thief and I thought she’d just mislaid it. Then she told me to call the sitter, Evelyn somebody, and tell her she’d better get to work or she wouldn’t have any work to get to. That’s the way she said it. ‘Tell her to get herself over here now or don’t bother coming at all.’ And she told me not to leave until Evelyn got there. Well, I waited and waited. Then I called Evelyn again on her cell and found out that she was on her way, but she’d stopped at the grocery store. So she wasn’t in any hurry to get there, and I don’t blame her, but I told her I had to leave, that I had another appointment. And she told me to go ahead, she’d be there in fifteen minutes anyway, and the client would be fine by herself. And if Evelyn says any different now, why, then she’s just not telling the truth.” Etta Mae stopped, drew a rasping breath and went on. “So that’s why I was late getting to your house, Miss Julia. I’d had to wait and wait, then run home and change clothes. I was just beside myself, because I didn’t want to miss your party.”
    “I appreciate it, Etta Mae, and I’m glad you made it.” But even as I said it, I recalled how agitated and flustered and breathless she’d appeared when she got to my house. Was that really because she’d been running late or was it because she’d just committed one crime and attempted another?
    Lord! What was I thinking? Not Etta Mae, no way in the world would I ever believe that. Why, she’d been collecting rent for me from the trailer park residents for years, and not a penny had ever been missing.
    “And I swear, Miss Julia,” she went on, “I swear on a stack of Bibles a mile high that I didn’t touch that woman. Well, except to give her a sponge bath and change her gown and the sheets on her bed. But that’s all, and as soon as Evelyn told me to leave, I was out of there. So I couldn’t’ve been the last person with her. Her own sitter, who she’d brought from Florida with her, was practically on her doorstep.”
    “I expect they’re questioning everybody who saw her that day,” I said soothingly. “It sounds like you’re in the clear, so I wouldn’t worry any more about it. Except, why do they think somebody tried to kill her?”
    “I don’t know! They wouldn’t tell me a thing, and Miss Julia, they treated me like a criminal—took my picture and everything. And all they told me is that Mrs. Delacorte’s in the hospital after some kind of assault—the aggravated kind, even. And I don’t know if she’s accused me or if Evelyn has or anything at all.”
    “Well, we’ll get Binkie on it. You need somebody to protect your interests. I expect she and Coleman are just gone for the day, maybe taking the baby to the dog show or something. We’ll keep trying to reach her.”
    By this time, I’d turned into the Hillandale Trailer Park—one of the less desirable assets of Wesley Lloyd’s estate that Lloyd and I had inherited—and was driving down the graveled road that ran through the middle of it. I’d engaged Etta Mae some time back to manage it for me, and she’d done an excellent job getting rid of the riffraff and demanding that the residents keep the place clean and free of litter. Her own little trailer looked neat and inviting, if you cared for a residence sitting on cement blocks. There were two pots of chrysanthemums by the steps leading to the door and a couple of plastic chairs under the awning.
    “Will you be all right by yourself?” I